It’s been a while since I wrote about credit cards, but I thought now would be a good time to talk about them because of a recent rule change that Chase made that’ll likely change up your travel hacking strategy. For sure, it’ll change up the Chase 5/24 Strategy that I laid out in a previous post (read that post for what I think is the optimal strategy for new travel hackers).
As reported on Doctor of Credit, Chase recently made a change that essentially limits you to earning the bonus on either the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Chase Sapphire Reserve unless you do a little bit of extra work.
You’ll still want to prioritize Chase branded cards before jumping to other cards because of the Chase 5/24 Rule, but you’ll need to know a little bit more info if you want to do it right.
Here’s what you need to know:
The New Chase Rule: One Sapphire Card Per Person
As a bit of background, Chase has three cards that are included in its Sapphire line of cards. These include the following cards:
- Chase Sapphire
- Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
For our purposes, only two cards really matter – the Chase Sapphire Preferred and the Chase Sapphire Reserve. The regular old Chase Sapphire card doesn’t really exist anymore, so you can just ignore that one.
This is what has happened under the new rule:
- As of right now, the official rule is that you can only have one Chase Sapphire branded card per person.
- If you already have multiple Chase Sapphire Cards (like I do), nothing will happen. They won’t close your accounts or anything like that.
- You can upgrade or downgrade your Chase Sapphire branded card if you want, but you’re not going to get a bonus if you do that.
- Chase has instituted a new 48-month limitation to earn the bonus again. That means you can earn the bonus on a Sapphire branded card once every 48 months from the date you earn the bonus.
Breaking it down, essentially what has happened is that Chase is basically treating the Sapphire cards as if they were all one card.
Which Chase Sapphire Card Should You Pick?
Here are the main differences between the two cards that we care about (there are more differences in benefits and things like that, but I’m not too concerned about those for these purposes):
- Chase Sapphire Preferred – $95 annual fee, points are worth 1.25 cents per point through the Chase travel portal.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve – $550 annual fee (not waived in the first year), $300 travel credit per statement year, points are worth 1.5 cents per point through the Chase travel portal, access to Priority Pass lounges and $100 towards global entry credit.
Which card you pick will really depend on the value you get from the cards.
- The Chase Sapphire Preferred is a good pick and the one I recommend for anyone who’s a beginner or scared of diving into the travel hacking space. It comes with a $95 annual fee, but the current offer also gives you 10,000 more Chase points compared to the current offer on the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which essentially cancels out the annual fee. It’s perfect for anyone who’s just wanting to dip their toes into the world of travel hacking.
- Generally, I recommend most people get the Chase Sapphire Reserve. It has a unique thing where you get a $300 travel credit each year, which makes the effective annual fee $250. Because the travel credit resets on your card anniversary date, you’re essentially getting $600 worth of travel credits in the first year you have the card while paying a $550 annual fee. With the addition of Priority Pass and the better travel portal, the Chase Sapphire Reserve has more value that makes the fee worthwhile.
Suggested Strategy With The One Sapphire Card Per Person Rule
With the new Chase One Sapphire Card Rule in place, your beginning strategy is going to change a little bit if you’re looking to optimize your cards.
Before this rule, you’d just grab both the Chase Sapphire Preferred and the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Obviously, you can’t do that now.
- I typically recommend getting the Chase Sapphire Reserve because the travel credits offset the annual fee. If you’re deathly afraid of the higher annual fee, then I won’t get mad if you get the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
- After that, snag yourself the Chase Ink Preferred. It’s a business card, so you’ll technically need to have a business. However, if you’re side hustling like I’ve been doing, then you absolutely will have a business, which then makes you eligible to get the card. Right now, the Chase Ink Preferred is offering an 80,000 point signup bonus, which is the highest Chase signup bonus out there. [Learn more about how Business Credit Cards work here].
So this is what you need to know right now about the new Chase one Sapphire Card per person rule. If you feel like supporting this site at all, feel free to sign up for any of the cards I mentioned above using the links in the post. You’ll still get the same signup bonus, but I’ll get a bonus as well that helps me keep the content flowing.
Hit me up if you have any questions!
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:
- GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
- Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($10) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Moomoo (5 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 5 free stocks (usually worth around $75-$100) if you open an account using a referral link and deposit $2,000. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (5 free stocks) – Webull also gives you 5 free stock valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free stocks using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- Digital Federal Credit Union ($100) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $100 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
- Upgrade ($100) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Importantly, this bonus says that it’s now scheduled to end on January 31, 2023. As long as you get your account opened before January 31st, you should be eligible. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $100 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- OnJuno ($60) – OnJuno is a fintech/neobank that is currently offering a $10 referral bonus if you open an account using a referral link and make a deposit of $50 or more. You will also get 1000 JCOIN. The 1000 of JCOIN is cryptocurrency. At the time I'm writing this, it'll be worth about $50. Check out my OnJuno referral bonus guide here.
- Varo ($30) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $30 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Albert ($150) – If you can manage to do a real direct deposit, Albert is an easy account you can use to earn a referral bonus. Here’s a review about Albert I wrote. And here’s a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Albert referral bonus.
- Netspend ($20 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $20 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $20 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
- DCU. Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $100 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a savings account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000.
- Novo Bank. Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. It’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
Very interesting. This may not be apparent from the change, but do you know if this rule applies to authorized users? I have the Sapphire Preferred and Mr. AR is an authorized user. Do you know if he can open his own card and get the bonus in his name? Or does the authorized user aspect disqualify him?
Yes – Mr. AR should still be able to get the sign up bonus for his Sapphire Preferred card.
I think – and you’ll want to do some research on this – that if you take him off as an authorized user, he should be able to open up his own Sapphire Preferred or Reserve and get the signup bonus. If he’s an authorized user, I would think that it’s like he already has the preferred, and thus, can’t get the bonus.
That sucks :). The wife had a CSReserve that we were gonna cancel and sign up for a CSPreferred instead. She already has a Chase Ink Plus – maybe its time to sign up for an Ink Preferred and close the other two
Better to not close them and instead downgrade them to a Chase Freedom and/or Chase Freedom Unlimited. Both are no-annual fee cards, and that way, you keep the credit history going for them. Always better to downgrade to a no annual fee card whenever possible. Remember though, if you’ve still got Chase Ultimate Rewards points that you haven’t used or transferred, you need to keep the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Reserve or Ink Preferred active. Otherwise, you lose the points that you didn’t use or transfer yet!
You should definitely go for the Chase Ink Preferred if you can. 80k points is almost as good as the CSR 100k offer. This one just hasn’t been talked about as much because it’s a business card.
Can’t you combine Chase Ultimate Rewards points from the CSP or CSR onto to a Chase Freedom card with no annual fee? I logged into my Chase account and this seems possible, but I didn’t pull the trigger.
The problem if you do that is that if you store Chase Ultimate Rewards points on a “non-premium” card like the Freedom or Freedom Unlimited, you can’t transfer them to travel partners. You have to have “premium” card, like the CSP, CSR, or Ink Preferred in order to redeem for travel.
Whoa thanks FP, that was not immediately clear inside the Chase interface!
I don’t think that’s true. You can move the points from Chase Freedom to Sapphire Preferred.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP) is a “premium” card – not in the same family as the Chase Freedom cards.
This was from a long time ago, so not sure what I was discussing almost a year ago – but I obviously misspoke when I said “lose” the points. I just meant that you can’t use them for travel partners if you only have the CF or CFU.
Thanks for pointing that out – it’s been a while since I’ve looked at the comments on this post, so good to point out.
In short, if you want to use travel partners, you need a premium Chase card. If you don’t have a premium chase card, you can only redeem your UR points at 1 cent per point in the travel portal, which is not the best way to use the points.
When downgrading from CPR to Chase Freedom, will I get chase freedom sign up bonus?
Nice Article!
I got lucky and got the CSP (for 2nd time) one week before the new rule was announced.
I downgraded my CSR to a 2nd freedom rather than cancelling last week. I wonder if I would have gotten the additional $300 travel credit if I kept my CSR for a few days after my AF. I got 2 $300 credits for 2016 and 2017 before they switched the travel credit rule. Technically that would be $900 in credits
I’m interested in the InK preferred but am a little nervous to apply bc my side hustle income is not enough to be considered an actual business (my opinion). Are you able to combine all your side hustles in the application? If so what is the “Company Name”.
You can definitely get the Ink Preferred (CIP, as the travel hacking folks call it). Any bit of side income you make is a business – you don’t have to be some huge company. My buddy got his CIP just by dog sitting a few times on Rover. He’d made less than 100 bucks at that point. You’ve got a blog – that’s a legit business, even if it’s not making a lot of money.
So in conclusion, don’t be nervous. I guarantee you can get the Ink Preferred without any hassle. (and if you do go for the Ink Preferred and don’t already have a referral link to use, use mine! I’d super appreciate it!).
Is the “double dip” method of signing up for both CSP and CSR on the day actually allowed by Chase? Or is this simply an unintended loophole?
While it technically works, if you break the rules, Chase can technically strip you of your accumulated points. I would be worried about this.
Has anyone actually asked a Chase representative of if doing the same-day signup is legitimate or not?
Rule number 1 with any sort of credit card bonus thing – never ask the reps about it! It is legitimate though. There are tons of people who have done this on the Reddit churning subreddit. Check here for more info – this is the best source of credit card info out there. Also, as far as I’m aware, the signup bonus doesn’t say that you’re only allowed to earn a signup bonus on one Sapphire card. It’s just that the current system has it set up so that, if you have one Sapphire card, you aren’t able to get a second one.
Any thoughts on whether a current CSP owner (over 24mo) can downgrade from CSP to retain their points, THEN sign up for the CSR to get the bonus out of it?
Right now, you can’t get the CSR bonus unless its been 24 months since you got your last bonus from any Sapphire type card. So, if you have a CSP now, you’ll need to calculate when you got the bonus, then wait 24 months. At that point, you’ll be eligible to get the bonus again.
You cannot double dip the $300 travel credit. Chase did away with that for anyone that applied for the CSR after May or June of 2017. The travel credit now follows your card anniversary and not the calendar year. I applied for my CSR in September 2017 and will not be eligible for the credit again until September 2018.
Not true actually. Once you hit your 2nd year and pay your second annual fee, you can then use up the travel credit, then downgrade the card to a Chase Freedom or Chase Freedom Unlimited. Chase gives you 30 to 60 days to downgrade the card and get a full refund of your annual fee. You’ll still get to use the travel credit a second time, and you’ll be refunded your annual fee.
So, to double dip the travel credit, you would do this:
(1) Year 1 = get the Sapphire Reserve, pay the annual fee, use the travel credit.
(2) Year 2 = pay the annual fee in year 2. $300 travel credit resets. Use up all of the travel credit within 30 to 60 days.
(3) Downgrade the card to a Chase Freedom or Chase Freedom Unlimited. Annual fee is refunded. Travel credit is used up. You’ve paid one annual fee of $450 and received $600 in travel credits.
Does that make sense?
Hey, is this still valid? Need to see whether or not to upgrade my CSP to CSR, or go ahead and downgrade to freedom.
Yep, still works. This is what I do every single year.
Would it be possible to do this:
1) Get a CSP, 50k bonus
2) Let 12 months pass
3) Downgrade to CFU
4) Year 2, Get a CSR, 50k Bonus
I already calculated that this is only worth it if less than ~25k is spent on travel/dining during 2 years, since the bonus from CSP would then be overshadowed by the extra points from having CSR all along.
But are there any other considerations to this? CSR getting sunsetted notwithstanding?
You won’t be able to do that because you can only earn the bonus on a CSP or CSR once every 24 months. So, if you get the CSP bonus in year 1, you can’t get a bonus from the CSP OR the CSR until 24 months from the date you earned the bonus. Basically, the only way to get both bonuses now is to open them both at the same time (i.e. double dip them).
Gotcha! Thanks!
Does this double-dip process currently work? I’ve read a few other sites that said it no longer works. Has anyone done this recently? I only have one Chase card, and would love to get these two as well!
Thank you!
The double dip is dead. Need to update this post. But check my recent post on what should be your first credit card if you need ideas about how to approach this now.
Really? It’s no longer possible to double dip on the travel credit? 🙁 I was just about to sign up
You can still double dip the travel credit. In year 1, you pay the $450 annual fee on the CSR. Use up the $300 travel credit. In year 2, you pay the $450 annual fee again and you get another $300 travel credit. Use up your $300 travel credit within 30 days of your Annual Fee, then you can downgrade your CSR to a Freedom or Freedom Unlimited and they’ll refund you your annual fee. So, you’ll have paid $450 in annual fees, but received $600 in travel credits, which means a net gain of $150.
When does the year 2 30 days count down start? For example, I opened my card on 9/1/2020. I have not received the bill for the year 2 annual fee yet. Are the 30 days count down starting from 9/1/2021 or after I got the statement for the year 2 annual fee? Thanks
OK…to confirm. I’ve got a 14 year old CS and a 12 year old CSP. I’m also well under the 5/24. Can I product switch these both to a Freedom and a Freedom Unlimited and then apply for the CSR AND qualify for the signup bonus? I really want the CSR, but the bonus is kind of a deal breaker.
Hey Wayne, I think I need to update this post due to some recent changes. But in short, you should product change your CS and CSP to a Freedom and Freedom Unlimited (or maybe two Freedoms if you can take advantage of the rotating 5% categories – you’re allowed to have two freedoms).
Once you’ve done that, you can apply for the CSR and you will qualify for the signup bonus. Hope that helps.
I have the CSR. I am going into my third year. Would I be able to downgrade to a freedom card and then apply for the CSR again to get the bonus?
The Sapphire cards recently changed the rules to 1 bonus every 48 months (used to be 24 months), so unfortunately, you won’t be able to earn the bonus for another year.
Ok but I can downgrade and apply again for the CSR at some point. The only thing I have been reading is people downgrading from CSR to Freedom and then reapplying for the CSP.
Yep, you can downgrade to the Freedom or Freedom Unlimited, then apply for the CSR or CSP and get the bonus again. You just need to wait 48 months from the date you last earned a bonus on a Saphire card.
I’m curious about experiences. I am “pre-qualified” for Chase Sapphire Preferred (see it under Just For You) when logged into Chase. 65k income, 15+ years of credit history, never a late payment before.. 120k credit available with 3% utilization.
But I want the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Do I have a good chance of getting the Reserve even though I’m “pre-qualified” for the Chase Sapphire Preferred? I don’t have any Sapphire products and I’m at 3/24.
You’ll definitely get the Reserve. Like I can say with 100% certainty you would get the CSR with no problem.
if I do double tip, will it show two accounts in the credit history with one Hard pull?
I believe under the current system, you’ll have two hard pulls. I think I need to update this post because the current double dip procedure doesn’t work. You now have to do something called the modified double dip.
Modified double dip doesn’t work anymore?
I have a CSP and want to get a CSR. Is there a way to get my CSP points onto my CSR points? If not, do I have to redeem all my points before switching in order to not lose them? Or any tips on managing points before switching?
You won’t lose your points. Just don’t close the CSP, downgrade it to CF or CFU. They’ll stay on there and you’ll be able to use them next time you get a CIP or CSR.
Your referral link is a dead link. Wanna fix that so you get a referral credit when I sign up?
To be specific, the link for the Sapphire Reserve is dead
Hey EJ,
I don’t have a link for it right now. Working on getting my stuff through compliance so I can get affiliate links for cards, but just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Thanks for the support though!
I’ve have
CSP for 7y
CSR for 3y
Had Ink 5y ago
Had Ink Bold 6y ago
Sounds like I should downgrade CSP to freedom and apply for another CSP or Ink, correct?
Is it easy to get more than one business card for ebay sells bus? or stick with just one Bus card?
Since you got the CSR 3 years ago, you won’t be eligible for any bonus from the Sapphire brand of cards until 48 months from whenever that CSR bonus posted. So you’ve still got another year you have to wait.
You are eligible for the CIP (Chase Ink Preferred), so that’s what I would get if I were you.
It’s easy to get multiple business cards, especially if you actually have multiple businesses. I’ve had as many as 5 Chase business cards open at once.